Natural Flavoring and "How would you like your crude oil today?"

I was asked about natural flavors the other day. It was a good question. The answer seems simple enough...until you stop to think about it. So, I opened my mouth to respond, and what came out was something like this:

"Well...it's flavor...that's naturally occuring in food. I think."

Twenty four hours and a Wikipedia article later, the simple answer is...

It's natural flavor in food.

Or, according to the US Code of Federal Regulations natural flavor is:

"the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or any other edible portions of a plant, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose primary function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional."

Intense. So, if natural flavor comes from food products, what does artifical flavoring come from?

Well, they can come from natural chemicals...or crude oil or tar. YUM.

Oh wait...I think I'll pass on that. However, I will not pass on any food related questions you have to ask me. Keep 'em coming!